Increaser for lasting shoes



Jan. 12, 1943. L1. F. TEHAN l 2,308,250

INCREASER FOR LASTING SHOES Filed Feb. 21, 1941 Patented Jan. 12, 1943 irs PATENT tries 4 Claims.

This invention relates to an increaser for use in lasting shoes whichare made with slide fasteners to close and secure the front opening ofth shoe.

When the shoe upper is lasted, it is customary practice to pull themargins of the upper strongly over the edges of the last, particularlyat the instep, so as to get a tight smooth fit of the upper against thesurface of the last. The resulting tension on the upper, andparticularly on the instep -portion thereof, causes the front portion ofthe quarters to press tightly against the last, so that Where the upperis made with a slide fastener of the type customarily known as zipperfastener, the slide element cannot be moved after the upper has beenlasted. In order to unfasten the front opening of the shoe for thedelasting of the shoe, it has been necessary to relieve this pressureagainst the last by some suitable means. For example, as described in mycopending application Serial No. 293,968, filed September 8, 1939,pursuant to which Letters Patent No. 2,244,031 were granted June 3,1941, a removable increaser is inserted between the front portion of theupper and the adjacent surface of the last when the upper is pulled overthe last. After the shoe has been completed, this increaser may beremoved, thus relieving the pressure on the upper surface sufficientlyto permit the operation of the fastener slide preparatory to thedelasting of the shoe. In actual practice, more or less trouble anddelay are caused by occasional difficulty in removing the increaser.ator also forgets at times to remove the increaser so that damageresults in the shoe in the eifort to delast the same.

According to the present invention, an improved increaser is providedwhereby the fastener slide can be readily operated Without the previousremoval of the increaser. This is made possible by providing anincreaser having a frontal channel which is adapted to underlie the pathof movement of the fastener slide. The increaser must be correctlylocated so that it will register with such path when the shoe is lasted.Upon Figure 5 is an elevation of a modified form of increaser embodyingthe invention.

The opercompletion of the shoe, the operator can readily operate thefastener slide to open the front of the shoe and permit delastingthereof.

For a more complete understanding of the inis located an increaserembodying the invention. 55

Figure 6 is a fragmentary bottom view of a shoe upper, without thetongue, prepared for use with the increaser shown in Figure 5.

In Figure 4 is illustrated an increaser l0 consisting of a lpad which ispreferably molded of suitable plastic material. This material ispreferably flexible and substantially incompressible and mayconveniently be a rubber compound or any other suitable equivalent. Theincreaser has maximum thickness at its upper end I2, this thicknesstapering off along the sides and bottom of the increaser to a relativelysharp edge I4. The increaser is also preferably transversely andlongitudinally curved to accommodate it to the sharply curved frontsurface of a last, so that transverse sections of the increaser arecrescentshaped as indicated in Figures 2 and 3. In the front or convexface of the increaser a longitudinal channel I6 is provided, thischannel being of suitable width and depth to accommodate the underportion of a slide element 20 which is a part of the slide fasteningdevice 22 of the type known as a zipper.

It is essential that when the shoe is lasted, the increaser will beaccurately positioned so that the channel I6 will directly underlie thepath of the slide element 20. Since operators who last shoe upperscannot be depended upon to locate the uppers on the lasts in the sameposition relative to the lasts, it is not safe to attach an in- -creaserof the kind described to the last itself.

In order to ensure correct positioning of the increaser with respect tothe path of the fastener slide 20, the increaser is preferably insertedin a pocket formed in the tongue-of the shoe. The shoe tongue may be inthe form of an extension 24 of the lining 26 of one of the quarters,this extension 24 being in the form of a ap of approximately the samesize and shape of a conventional shoe tongue and projecting across thefront of the last so as to underlie the front portions of both quarters.A facing piece 30 is secured along its side edges to the extension 24 soas to form therewith a pocket adapted to receive an increaser l0. Thelocation of the pocket with respect to the front opening of the shoe canbe accurately determined in assembling the parts which make up theupper. Hence, when the increaser I0 is inserted in the pocket, thefrontal channel I6 is accurately located with respect to the path oftravel of the slide 2% regardless of variations in the position of theupper itself on the last. The facing piece 3@ is preferably of thin softleather so that it yields readily into the channel I6 to permit theactuation of the slide 20.

Figure 3 is a fragmentary sectional view of the front portion of anupper having a shoe tongue of the conventional type, this tongueconsisting of a back member 32 and a facing member 311 joined at theedges to form a pocket for an increaser H3. The usual practice in'assembling a shoe upper which includes a tongue of, conventional formis to attach the tongue to one of the"- quarter linings by a short'lineof stitching 35 j it is easy for the slide to be operated so as to lundo the fastening and permit the removal of the shoe from the last.

Figure 5 shows an increaser lil which may be of substantially the samesize and shape as the increaser I9 illustrated in Figure e. Thisincreaser, however, is provided with a number of ears l2 and Ml made ofmetal or some suitable equivalent. These ears are for the purpose `olf-gaccurately positioning the increaser between the tongue and the front ofthe upper in a shoe upper which has no tongue pocket or its equivalent.To receive the ears 2, a pair of slots i5 are cut in the lining of theupper and are suitably spaced apart. To receive the ears M a pair ofslots 48 are cut in the lining of the upper near the throat. Byinserting the ears 42 and i4 in the slots '36 and 48, the correctposition of the increaser 40 is determined and maintained so that theslide will operate properly after the completion of the shoe on thelast.

It is evident that various modifications and changes may be made in theembodiments of the invention herein shown and described withoutdeparting from the spirit or scope thereof as dened in the followingclaims,

I claim:

l. An increaser for lasting a shoe having a slide fastener, whichcomprises a pad of flexible substantially incompressible material shapedto l:lit over the portion of the last which underlies the tongue of theshoe, said increaser having a frontal channel adapted to underlie thepath of the slide element of the fastener.

2.- An increaser for lasting a shoe having a slide fastener, whichcomprises a pad of flexible substantially incompressible material havingthe approximate length and width of a shoe tongue and a substantialthickness tapering to thin side and bottom edges, said increaser havinga frontal channel therein adapted to underlie the path of the slideelement of the fastener.

3. Steps in a method of shoemaking, which comprise assembling a shoeupper with a slide fastener, mounting within said upper a flexiblemember having a longitudinal frontal groove arranged so that said grooveunderlies said fastener, lasting the upper with said member therein,finishing the shoe, and operating thev fastener slide to open thefastener.

4. Stepsin a method of shoemaking, which comprise assembling a shoeupper with a slide fastener, lasting said upper with a flexibleincreaser between the front part of the last and the upper with afrontal groove registering with and underlying the slide fastener,finishing the shoe, and operating the fastener slide to open thefastener.

JOHN F. TEEHAN.

